Thursday, March 31, 2005

Terry Schiavo's Death

Over the past few months, I have read the saga of the legal battle over Terri Schiavo's feeding tube. My heart goes out to the parents for their long years of hoping for improvement, as well as a costly legal struggle with the husband. I was sympathetic to his cause. Until, that is, I read that, during exams after her stroke, there were symptoms of unreported abuse (rib cage, other bruises) and that he had been there during her fall, not administered CPR even though he knew how, and delayed calling "911." Add that to young children with another woman. Well, his motive continued to be waiting out her death to get the $1 million legal settlement over the failure to diagnose her potassium imbalance.To the end, he proved he was unsympathetic, by not allowing them the courtesy of being there when she did finally pass on. Not that the last image is one that we want to remember. However, it seems, in this case, that image would put closure on what has been a life-shaping struggle for them. And it seems to be continuing in the form of who and how the funeral arrangements will be made.If this case, when the evil, self-serving Bush family decided they wanted to help play G-d, pushes everyone into documenting their last wishes (DNR, feeding tubes, etc.) it will have had some benefit long-term. In the short-term, the grief of the family is overwhelmingly sad.I will be staying on top of my low potassium readings as well, due to a medication that I take. I will be vigilant and eat lots of potassium-rich foods -- bananas, almonds, avocado, oj, spinach, etc.